The present invention generally relates to printing apparatus and in some embodiments, more particularly, to inkjet printers.
Inkjet print heads typically require a well-controlled substrate temperature to maintain a consistent ink viscosity and jetting performance. Currently, inkjet print heads include a temperature sense resistor (TSR) integrated into a chip to monitor the substrate temperature. The chip can also have dedicated power field effect transistors (FETs) to control the heating elements, as in U.S. Pat. No. 6,102,515 which is hereby incorporated by reference insofar as it relates to the use of FETs to control heating elements in print heads. In some examples, a printer control unit periodically monitors the TSR(s) to determine the substrate temperature. Then, the control unit turns heating elements on and off, accordingly, to maintain the proper substrate temperature for optimum jetting performance.